Short Interest in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) Decreases By 8.1%

Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,580,000 shares, a decline of 8.1% from the October 15th total of 6,070,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,510,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days. Currently, 12.8% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. BMO Capital Markets lowered Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $105.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $67.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of Brinker International in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $83.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Brinker International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.45.

Insider Activity at Brinker International

In other Brinker International news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction of $386,634.06. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,376,774.42. The trade was a 13.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brinker International

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new position in Brinker International in the 1st quarter valued at $714,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Brinker International by 36.7% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 279,974 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $13,908,000 after buying an additional 75,225 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Brinker International by 2.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,535,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $275,004,000 after buying an additional 135,580 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in Brinker International by 231.8% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,583,239 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $78,602,000 after acquiring an additional 1,106,046 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 1,686.8% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 192,972 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $13,969,000 after acquiring an additional 182,172 shares in the last quarter.

Brinker International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EAT traded up $5.46 during trading on Monday, hitting $122.91. 1,446,728 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,454,121. Brinker International has a 52-week low of $34.77 and a 52-week high of $123.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $89.99 and a 200 day moving average of $74.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The company has a market cap of $5.46 billion, a PE ratio of 28.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 2.46.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. Brinker International had a negative return on equity of 839.19% and a net margin of 4.11%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.28 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Brinker International will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Brinker International Company Profile

Brinker International, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the ownership, development, operation, and franchising of casual dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. It operates and franchises Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy restaurant brands.